Malta, which came under scrutiny in June 2021, has been removed from the list after drawing up an action plan that puts the island nation in a better position to fight money laundering and terrorist financing.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF / GAFI) has announced that it has removed Malta from its “gray” list of countries under increased surveillance, mainly due to its money laundering exposure, and added Gibraltar.
Malta, which came under scrutiny in June 2021, has been removed from the list after drawing up an “action plan now completed” which puts the island nation “in a better position to fight money laundering and its financing”. “GAFI President Marcus Player told a news conference at the end of the organisation’s plenary session in Berlin.
“Since its recall, the Mediterranean country has” doubled its business register resources, carried out a thorough risk assessment and undertaken to inspect all businesses, identifying those who disguise their true owners, “he added.
Malta now imposes, according to the GAFI, “effective and dissuasive sanctions against ‘gatekeepers'”, ie lawyers, accountants, service providers in companies, involved in the opacity of the financial sector for which the island country is often blamed.
The British enclave of Gibraltar, on the other hand, enters this list as “significant deficiencies” have been identified in what is often referred to as one of the biggest tax havens.
“Gibraltar needs to take some action, mainly focusing on financial system players, especially gambling operators and lawyers,” said Marcus Player, calling for more control over gambling and real estate.
In total, 23 countries are on the list of countries under enhanced surveillance.
Pakistan, which hopes to be removed from the gray list at the plenary session, did not make the decision it hoped for, but GAFI welcomed the progress it has made and allowed a regime change to be seen if the commission gives a positive opinion.
“A lot of work has been done by the Pakistani authorities” who “extensively considered the 34 points” of the action plan agreed with GAFI.
“Pakistan has shown that it is investigating and prosecuting terrorist financing against high-ranking members of terrorist organizations as defined by the United Nations and that it is conducting investigations and prosecutions for money laundering,” he said.
The blacklist of “high-risk” countries remains the same, including Iran and North Korea.
